Politics

Labour crisis: Jeremy Corbyn’s lead HALVED in London with six seats in jeopardy


Labour and the Conservatives have both lost ground since the 2017 contest to the Liberal Democrats, whose share has doubled overall on the back of an anti-Brexit campaign, according to a YouGov survey which was commissioned by Queen Mary University of London’s (QMUL) Mile End Institute.

Jeremy Corbyn’s party stands on 39 percent in the capital – 10 points ahead of the Tories but nothing like the commanding 22 point advantage it took in to the 2017 vote.

The Conservatives are on 29 percent, down from a 33 percent share in the 2017 contest. The Liberal Democrats are at 19 percent, almost twice as high as the 8.8 percent they scored in 2017.

Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party is at six percent in the Remain-dominated capital while Sian Berry’s Green Party is almost level at five.

If the poll findings were echoed on December 12, Labour would struggle to hold recently gained Battersea, Kensington, Croydon Central and Enfield Southgate and be in danger of losing long-held Dagenham & Rainham and the 2015-gained Bermondsey & Old Southwark.

Brexit remains the biggest concern to Londoners ahead of usual poll-topping issues such as the NHS and the economy.

And Mr Corbyn insists Labour’s bid for a new Brexit deal and a second referendum within six months is “realistic”.

READ MORE: Jeremy Corbyn confronted on ‘misleading’ £500m NHS claim

The party leader told supporters in Harlow, Essex, that a June deadline for fresh exit terms with the European Union and then putting it to a public vote would be “do-able” if Labour wins the December 12 election.

He said: “The deadline we have set for ourselves is a realistic one.

“Keir Starmer and I have spent many, many hours in Brussels and other European capitals going through our process with governments, officials and other socialist parties across Europe.

“We wouldn’t be saying this if we didn’t think it was realistic and do-able.”

Mr Gove said Mr Corbyn’s election pledge of another Brexit vote – with a choice of leaving the EU with a Labour-negotiated deal or remaining – was going back to “square one”.

He told talkRADIO’s Julia Hartley-Brewer: “He wants to go back to square one, renegotiate the whole Brexit deal – when we’ve got a great deal with Boris – then bring it back on a referendum.

“He won’t even say whether or not he’ll back his own deal.”

Labour still appears split over Brexit despite Mr Corbyn declaring the debate over with shadow cabinet members Diane Abbott and Emily Thornberry both pledging to campaign to Remain instead of backing a Labour Brexit deal in a second referendum.

Mr Gove said: “Even before he has begun to negotiate, Diane Abbott and Emily Thornberry have said they’ll vote against any deal he brings back.

“Well, if Diane Abbott cannot trust Jeremy Corbyn to get a good Brexit deal, why should any of the rest of us?”.

YouGov interviewed 1,175 adults in London between October 30 and November 4 in a survey Commissioned by Queen Mary University of London’s Mile End Institute.



READ SOURCE

Leave a Reply

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this site, you accept our use of cookies.